Sheep Parade

Every October Cedar City has a Sheep Parade and Rodeo.

It was a gorgeous Saturday morning for a stroll down Main St...

Tractors

Old Cars

And SHEEP!

I was a hoot watching people, not dogs, herd the sheep.

I also got to see some of my friends that were participating in the parade as bagpipers and cowboys!

Weekend in SLC

During my five days up north I never went to sleep before midnight, but it was all worth it.

The GBAC:

When I tell people that I am going to an Archaeological Conference they always respond with something like, "What do you have to talk about? Hasn't everything already been found?"

In short, no, not everything has been found. Archaeology, like other sciences, is a ongoing field. New information and discoveries are always coming in. The best way to hear about these discoveries is to read about it in various Anthropological/Archaeological magazines BUT I don't have time for that! I would rather hear about it during a presentation then read about it.

Conferences are fun because the field of Great Basin archaeology is small so if you don't know someone chances are you've heard of them. As for me, I know a lot of people because I've been working in the Great Basin for the last 6 years (not as long as most, but long enough). I have made a ton of friends and it's a blast to see them a couple times a year (at conferences)!

Old college friends:

One of the highlights of my trip was being able to go to dinner (at CPK!) with my college freshman roommates! It has been a few years since I've seen most of them and it was so great to catch up. I know we all blog BUT it is always more fun to see everyone!

[Picture from one of our previous reunions. 2005 maybe?]

I also stayed with Emily for a few days which was a blast! It makes me sad that I would be able to hangout with her as much once she gets married and moves away so I gotta soak it all up while I can.

BYU Football:

I went to the BYU football with my cousin, her husband, and their kid. There is no way I would let the rain stop me from enjoying a little college football! BYU won... well, Wyoming lost... but I still had a great time!

Overall it was a great 5 days! Thanks to everyone for making time to see me!

*Special shout out to Nate and Mal, Coleen, and the Searcy's!*

GBAC Road Trip

I am heading up to SLC for the Great Basin Anthropological Conference (GBAC) today and I couldn't be more excited!

Not much compares to spending two days in a large conference center with a bunch of old, plaid-wearing, bearded men; listening to presentations; seeing old professors and coworkers; and mingling with fellow archaeologist!

Since I don't make it up north very often, I will also spend the week trying to meet up with my friends and family members that live in northern UT.

Hopefully I'll be seeing some of you soon!

Born to Run

It was a hot summer day, the hike was burley and I was sweating like crazy. All of a sudden I heard my coworker say, "Court, I can't do this anymore. We just weren't built for this." I paused and immediately thought back to my Biological Anthropology/Evolutionary Biology class and replied, "Yes, yes we were."

We were built for more then just long distance walking, we were built for long distance running. It's in our genes. It's part of our history. Why do you think we out lived the smarter, bulkier, tougher Neanderthals? Because we could run!

If you have ever ran, or walked, or stood on your own two feet you should read this:

Have you ever had an injury from running? Did you then go out and buy really nice, cushy, expensive running shoes and then get injured again? Do you want someone or something to blame? Blame your shoes! Our ancestors didn't have Nikes 200,000 years ago and they were just fine. And you know what? We don't need nice expensive shoes now.

The book is about long distance running and it focuses on a tribe of running people called the Tarahumara. These people have the secret of ultramarathon running and they are willing to share it. The book is full of facts, research, and an amazing story. I don't want to spoil anything but I promise if you read it you won't be disappointed.

P.S. Have you seen these? They may look ridiculous but they are amazing!

Reversed

Instead of crying myself to sleep I actually woke up because I was crying.

I have nightmares. A lot of them. I have them almost nightly.

I think that's why I'm such a hot sleeper. When I dream I am not calm. I am anxious. I always wake up in a cold sweat. I can usually get back to sleep, though. I wake up in a panic, figure out it was all a nightmare, get a glass of water, and then go back to sleep.

Tonight is different. Tonight I'm scared. I woke up because I was bawling my eyes out.

I dreamed that I was pregnant. I could feel the baby kicking inside me [I've had pregnancy dreams before]. But this one was different. Right before I was supposed to give birth the baby stopped kicking. I remember pushing on my stomach and I could feel something but it didn't move. The doctor told me it was time to give birth, but the baby had just died, so I would be delivering it stillborn.

It was terrible. It feels so real. I know it wasn't and I know it doesn't mean anything but that still doesn't change how I'm feeling right now.

...

Ok, I feel better now. It's time for some water and then back to bed.

Sweet dreams.

"Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book." ~Author Unknown

There are so many books I want to read. So many classics that I should have read in high school but I got the cliffnotes instead (cheater!). I always told myself that once I got a stable job I would have time to read for fun. Now I have great job, I am financially stable, and I actually have some spare time (when I'm not working 70 hours a week) . I am that type of person that is usually reading more then one book at a single time. I usually have an intellectual book and a fun book that I read simultaneously. That always keeps me on my toes. BUT it takes me forever to read a single book because I never have the time... until now!

While I was lying on my living room floor doing my crunches today I noticed my bookshelf (which is full of mostly text books... NERD!). On my shelf there are some books that I have never read... I guess I always meant to but I never got around to it. I immediately stretched out my hand and grabbed the Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit. I've read The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring once before but I never went on to The Two Towers. I'm a little ashamed. Who hasn't read The Lord of the Rings? It's a classic!

My goal is to watch less TV (we'll see how that goes) and spend the next year or so catching up on all the books I should have read and the ones I did read but couldn't enjoy (high school really does that to you) before my life gets busy again.

I just finished Finding Darwin's God [Great book! Shall I write a review about that? Would you like to hear my personal stance on evolution? You may not like it.] and now I am going to finish Born to Run and then it's onto the LOTR (I think I'll start over because it's been so long)!

I'm pretty excited! Do you have any book suggestions for me?